Sean McVay is especially chatty at the 2026 Annual League Meeting and delivered some interesting revelations on Monday in Phoenix.
Matthew Stafford is back after an NFL MVP season in 2025 and is entrenched as the starter, but the Rams’ backup situation has quietly lingered as one of the more fascinating items on the offseason agenda across the league.
Might Jimmy Garoppolo return to reprise his role as Stafford’s understudy? Could McVay and general manager Les Snead look elsewhere? The answer is yes — to both — and includes the addition of another interesting name: Kirk Cousins.
McVay told reporters the Rams are looking at both Garoppolo and Cousins for their backup job, an unusually candid admission made by a coach of a team that has neither under contract.
“Hey, I’d love to have Jimmy Garoppolo back with us,” McVay said, per the team’s website. “That’s a big deal for us. He’s earned the right to be able to take his time and do whatever he wants. Is there an opportunity to explore, if it’s not Jimmy, (like) Kirk Cousins? Of course. I’d love to be able to be able to see what that looks like. So those are two guys we’ve talked about.”
McVay was Cousins’ offensive coordinator in Washington from 2014-2016.
On a potential reunion with Cousins, McVay added: “Those are things that we’re very interested in possibly exploring, but again, it’s really premature. I know Kirk has some other options and opportunities as well, but he’s a guy that I have familiarity with, history and a lot of reverence for because of the gratitude from our experiences together.”
It’s refreshing to receive such honesty regarding two players still available to any interested suitor, and the transparency coincided with another reveal from McVay.
